Meet Irma from Fairyspit Dolls ang extra giveaway entires!

Where are you from and tell us a little about yourself?
I am originally from New Jersey, USA. I now live in beautiful New Zealand. I am married & work in retail during the day and on my dolls in my free time. I’ve been an artist and a fan of fantasy my whole life.

Why did you start your Etsy shop?
I had my own domain and sold on Ebay for a while. I found Etsy and thought a handmade community was a better fit for my dolls.

How did you come up with your Etsy shop name?

Fairyspit is a name I used for my old domain. It is a song title from an obscure band that fit my dolls at the time I was making sassy pixies.

What is your favorite item in your shop and why?
That is a tough one, but if I have to pick it would be my fairy bear, Sunny. He is so adorable in person, he has the most heart melting expression on his face.

Do any of your pieces have a memorable story behind them?
My dragon Lucille was something I started making about 2 years ago. I started her armature and added her core of wool and she just sat unfinished along with a few other dolls in my workspace. One day I decided to pick up these pieces to see how they would evolve and I think she turned out more beautiful than I could have imagined. It was almost as if she wasn’t meant to be made until the time I decided to pick her back up.

What was your first piece you sold?
In January 2009, I sold my baby dragon Sparky to a customer in Finland.

Where do you get your inspiration for your pieces?
My baby dragons were inspired by the dragon whelpling pets in World of Warcraft. I used to play quite a lot and wanted to make a real life version of them. My other pieces are inspired by everyday life. Sometimes an idea will just come to me out of the blue. It is very random. I’ve got a long list of pieces I would like to make and it is growing all the time.

Do you have plans for expansion?

I’d love to be at a place where I’ve got a long list of orders to be made. Right now I am just trying to promote my pieces and create awareness about needle felting and the amazing things that can be made in fiber.

Apart from creating beautiful pieces, what else do you do?
I read lots. Right now I am working my way through the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett. I also love to discover new places in my gorgeous adopted country, it is truly a magical and inspiring place.


Any other sites you can be found on?
I have my blog where I post works in progress and new pieces. http://fantasyfelt.blogspot.com
My Facebook fan page is also a great way to get updates: http://www.facebook.com/fantasyfelt

Anything else you would like us to know?
I am creating a series of larger and more highly detailed needle felted dolls of iconic 80’s fantasy characters. Falkor from The NeverEnding Story was the first and I have just started on Ludo from Labyrinth. I really enjoy making these types of sculptures although they are very labour intensive. It is extremely satisfying to bring something like that to life in miniature.

**Please take a moment to visit Fairyspit Dolls.  If you comeback here and leave a comment with your favorite item you can have a total of five extra entries to leave on any or a combination of my current giveaways.  You MUST leave the comments for the extra entries on the giveaways you would like to be entered into.  This offer ends on  9/3 at midnight.